Resilient casing with slidable tool



Sept. 2, 1952 A. ANDREWS 2,608,890

RESILIENT CASING WITH SLIDABLE TOOL Filed June 10, 1948 C /0 S /8I9 Till 1:; 3, HI

/4 5" 1m WL: II? \llg ll i /6 7 F G 3 Fl Gr 5 INVENTOR. Albert Andrews BY 2 /V Q MW Fifi. 6 ATTORNEYS Patented Sept. 2, 1952 "This invention -relates :topocket. 1130015,. and more particularly .1t0.:.a .pocket tool adapted to provide a bottle of cap: opener,:.knife,v nail. -file,; or other tool which is movable toand retained. in :a safe andprotected position when not in use;

Among theobjects. oitthis'. invention are toypr o. videsuch a .tool which has as few parts .aspossible-;=-tov provide such a. tool which includes-a slide or the like, on one end of ewhichis. a.:to,ol head" suchzas a bottle or cap opener, nail file or the like; to provide such a tool which includesia slide which may be moved readilyfrom an .extended or operative position. .toa. retracted. orv inoperative position; .to. provide sucha tool in which theslide is held against accidental; movement fromjeith'er .theliextended .or retracted position, by sufficient resistance for purposes of normal use; to providesuch atoolwhichmay also incorporate other elements, such as a key chain or ring; to provide such a tool which maybe made in more than one form; and to provide such a tool which is inexpensive to manufacture and effectiveinoperation. Y

other objects and the .ncvel-efeatures iofzthis invention zwillbecome apparent fr m the e iptio which .io1l0wstaken. in connection, with the accompanying .drawinainivhich-z ."Eig. ':1.i a tonplan view of; a'rtc n ru t inac ordanc withthisinvention, in extended position;

Fig. 2 is a side elevation of the tool of Fig. l, partly broken away to show the interior construction;

Fig. 3 is a transverse cross section taken along line 3--3 of Fig. 1;

Fig. 4 is a top plan view of a tool having a modified slide, and also showing the slide during movement to retracted position;

Fig. 5 is a transverse cross section taken along line 5-5 of Fig. 4;

Fig. 6 is an end view of the tool of Fig. 1; and

Fig. 7 is a fragmentary side elevation, at the rear end, 01": a tool having a modified casing.

As illustrated in Figs. 1 and 2, a pocket tool constructed in accordance with this invention may comprise a casing C in which is received a slide S, the slide S being provided at its outer end with a suitable tool head H], such as a bottle or cap opener, as shown, it being understood that a knife, nail file, screwdriver head, or any other desired tool head may be formed or mounted on the outer end of the slide S. The slide S and casing C are both preferably generally rectangular in cross section, for convenience in use, although other shapes may be utilized, and the and. 1.3. ofthe slotar'e normally: closed, -;as when a button l;4 of slides is disposed ineitherlenlargement 12; butmay-be-spread apart,;as in Fig..;4,'.when. the-,slide Sis moved between..ex.- tended .andlretracted. positions, the position of enlargements t2 corresponding. to. the position of buttonjftk. in extended and retracted position. of the slide S. Button 1.4 is adapted .itolbe', utilized in moving the slide from extended to retracted position, the relative proportions of button 1.4. and enlargements .12, bein Such that ,the .button. fits within. each enlar ement. as in Ei ami the width ii-slot por ion H; withresnect to. the width o huttpnitab 'n z uch-ithat during movemen alon the... slot; por io .1. th button. 1 4 Causes the slctto besnr adnthe side walls 1550fcasin 0 being pushed wardly, "as ind ca ed, bvithe slightly exaggerated dotted-position-of figfi' and tall-re duum Fla 5- i :f.

..;Awi eev dent t etan e to. .in er ent orbntton Malena sl rt o te si .tQmai il -but on ma pr d r ne os t on 11.,

, o th basemen P 1 no mal .1! a 9i coar r-wh t slid 5' i rn.-.r ira e notifie nd; he 9 head 19 i W thd wn nt casing C, the slide is adequately retained within the casing, because there is no significant force tending to move the slide out of the casing. Thus, when carried in the pocket of a user, the possibility of the tool head causing damage to the material of the pocket, or even causing personal damage to the user, is obviated. When the slide S is in extended position for use, as in Fig. 1, the thumb or a finger of the user is conveniently placed on the button l4, so that the tool head H! is easily maintained in extended position.

The casing C is formed of resilient material, normally metal such as steel, brass, aluminum or the like, although certain types of plastic may be used, particularly those having considerable resiliency or fiexual strength, such as polyvinyl acetate and chloride, methyl methacrylate, laminated plastics of various types, and others. The slide S is, of course, preferably made of metal, such as steel, brass, aluminum, or the like. The button M of the slide S of Figs. 1-3, may be formed by material punched out of the slide, as when a punch produces a cavity is of Fig. 3, and the material of the button is extruded from the opposite side of the slide. Or, the button may be formed separately and attached to the slide, such as in the case of thebutton 14' of Fig. 5, which is provided with a stem l7 extending through a hole drilled or punched in the slide LS and its lower end riveted over, as shown. Or, the button may be spot welded or otherwise attached to the slide.

The rear end of the casing C may carry a key ring or chain, for which purpose the side walls 15 of the casing C may be provided with rearward extensions [8 brought together at the end, a hole I9 being provided in each extension 18 for a key ring 21, as in Figs. 1 and 2, a key chain, or the like. Or, as in Fig. 7, each side wall l of a casing C' may be provided with a hole 22 adjacent the rear end thereof, through which a key chain 20, or a key ring or the like, passes.

From the foregoing, it will be evident that the pocket tool of this invention fulfills to a marked degree the requirements and objects hereinbefore set forth. By utilizing the resiliency of the casing itself to maintain the tool slide and head in desired position, i. 43., either extended or retracted, the number of parts and the cost of manufacture are reduced to a minimum. Also, the button can be formed inexpensively on the slide, and the cost of manufacture of the slide itself is relatively low. The relatively wide range of materials of which the pocket tool of this invention may be made enables various decorative eflects, such as advertising indicia, to be placed on the casing, particularly when the casing is made of a resilient plastic. Also, the utility of the tool is increased by providing the rear end of the casing with a key ring or chain, or the like.

Although variations in the construction of the pocket tool of this invention have been illustrated and described, it will be understood that other variations may exist, that various other materials, in addition to those enumerated may be utilized, and that additional embodiments may also exist, all without departing from the spirit and scope of this invention.

What is claimed is:

1. A pocket tool or the like comprising a slide having a tool at one end; a casing for said slide, said casing being formed of resilient material and having a top and a bottom, and sides con necting said top and bottom, said top having a longitudinal slot extending from end to end thereof; and a button extending from said slide and having a top and a bottom, and sides connecting said top and bottom, said top having a longitudinal slot extending from end to end thereof with an enlargement of said slot at spaced points corresponding to extended and retracted positionsof said slide; and a button extending from said slide through said slot and adapted to be moved along said slot and to be received in said enlargements, said button having a width greater than the normal width of said slot.between said enlargements at the point of contact therewith, said enlargements having a size corresponding to said button, so that said slot is spread by movement of said button therealong, the resistance of said slot to movement of said button from said enlargements thus tending to maintain said button in one of said enlargements and thereby tending to maintain said slide in a corresponding extended or retracted position.

3. A pocket tool or the like as defined in claim 2, wherein the width of said slot is greater between said enlargements than between each enlargement and the adjacent and of said casing.

, ALBERT ANDREWS.

REFERENCE S CITED The following references are of record in the file of this patent:

UNITED STATES PATENTS Number Name Date 933,878 Borsch Sept. 14, 1909 1,434,388 Hughes Nov. 7, 1922 1,561,262 Martin et a1. Nov. 10, 1925 1,906,573 Gits May 2, 1933 1,953,690 Sanways Apr. 3, 1934 2,270,655 Keeran Jan. 20, 1942 

